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Swifts

Swifts are a family of highly aerial birds known as Apodidae, which reside within the Apodiformes order alongside hummingbirds. They resemble swallows due to convergent evolution, as both hunt insects on the fly, but they are not closely related. Swifts have small, weak legs, which led to them sometimes being depicted without feet historically. Their classification is complex, with some fossil evidence suggesting they appeared during the Eocene period. There are about 100 species of swifts, which are known for their high speeds, with the white-throated needletail reaching up to 169 km/h. They have elongated wingtip bones and the ability to rotate their wings from the base, which aids in their maneuverability and efficiency in flight. Swiftlets have evolved a form of echolocation to navigate dark caves. These birds are found worldwide except in the extremes of the polar, desert, and some oceanic islands, and migratory swifts travel from temperate regions to the tropics in winter. Their nests, often attached to vertical surfaces with saliva or located in wall cavities, are unique—some are used in the traditional bird's nest soup. Swifts are insectivores, hunting mid-flight, and their breeding and development patterns are more similar to seabirds than passerines. While no swift species has been recorded as extinct since 1600, some are considered endangered or vulnerable due to factors including habitat loss and overharvesting of their nests by humans for culinary purposes.

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Sunbittern
Swallows, Martins

Swifts

Tanagers & Allies
Tapaculos
Thrushes
Thrush-tanager
Tinamous
Tits, Chickadees
Tityras, Becards, Sharpbill
Toucan Barbets
Toucans
Treecreepers
Trogons
Tropicbirds
Tyrant Flycatchers, Calyptura
Vireos, Greenlets, Shrike-babblers
Wagtails, Pipits
Waxbills, Munias & Allies
Waxwings
Woodpeckers
Wrens
Wrenthrush
Yellow-breasted Chat

American Black Swift

Cypseloides niger

Band-rumped Swift

Chaetura spinicaudus

Chapman's Swift

Chaetura chapmani

Chestnut-collared Swift

Streptoprocne rutila
A photo of a Chimney Swift (Chaetura pelagica)

Chimney Swift

Chaetura pelagica

Costa Rican Swift

Chaetura fumosa

Great Swallow-tailed Swift

Panyptila sanctihieronymi

Grey-rumped Swift

Chaetura cinereiventris

Lesser Swallow-tailed Swift

Panyptila cayennensis

Short-tailed Swift

Chaetura brachyura

Sick's Swift

Chaetura meridionalis

Spot-fronted Swift

Cypseloides cherriei

Vaux's Swift

Chaetura vauxi

White-chinned Swift

Cypseloides cryptus

White-collared Swift

Streptoprocne zonaris

White-fronted Swift

Cypseloides storeri

White-naped Swift

Streptoprocne semicollaris
A photo of a White-throated Swift (Aeronautes saxatalis)

White-throated Swift

Aeronautes saxatalis
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Species Categories

African & New World ParrotsAlbatrossesAnhingas, DartersAntbirdsAntpittasAntthrushesAuksAustral Storm PetrelsBarn OwlsBlack-capped DonacobiusBushtitsCaracaras, FalconsCardinals & AlliesChachalacas, Curassows, GuansChats, Old World FlycatchersCormorants, ShagsCotingasCranesCrows, JaysCuckoosDippersDucks, Geese, SwansFinches, EuphoniasFinfootsFlamingosFrigatebirdsGannets, BoobiesGnatcatchersGnateatersGoldcrests, KingletsGrebesGulls, Terns, SkimmersHerons, BitternsHummingbirdsIbises, SpoonbillsJacamarsJacanasKingfishersKites, Hawks, EaglesLarksLeaf Warblers & AlliesLimpkinLongspurs, Snow BuntingsLoonsManakinsMitrospingid TanagersMockingbirds, ThrashersMotmotsNew World BarbetsNew World QuailNew World SparrowsNew World VulturesNew World WarblersNightjarsNorthern Storm PetrelsNuthatchesOilbirdOld World Sparrows, SnowfinchesOlive WarblerOropendolas, Orioles, BlackbirdsOspreysOvenbirdsOwlsOystercatchersParrotbills & AlliesPelicansPenduline TitsPenguinsPetrels, Shearwaters, Diving PetrelsPheasants & AlliesPigeons, DovesPloversPotoosPuffbirdsRails, Crakes & CootsSandpipers, SnipesSapayoaShrikesSilky-flycatchersSkuasSpindalisesStarlings, RhabdornisStilts, AvocetsStone-curlews, Thick-kneesStorksSunbitternSwallows, MartinsSwiftsTanagers & AlliesTapaculosThrushesThrush-tanagerTinamousTits, ChickadeesTityras, Becards, SharpbillToucan BarbetsToucansTreecreepersTrogonsTropicbirdsTyrant Flycatchers, CalypturaVireos, Greenlets, Shrike-babblersWagtails, PipitsWaxbills, Munias & AlliesWaxwingsWoodpeckersWrensWrenthrushYellow-breasted Chat

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